Energy monitoring solutions: taking advantage of NSW submetering grants

The NSW Government has announced a $12 million metering package to help NSW businesses improve their metering and monitoring systems.

The package includes grants to install metering, access to expert services to develop comprehensive metering and monitoring plans, and support to continuously monitor and improve performance. Eligible businesses can get up to $20,000 in matched funding to install new submeters on their equipment and processes.

There are tried and tested measuring technologies and expertise available to support every aspect of the measurement of energy usage, and to make use of the opportunity provided by the NSW Government.

The right tailor-made energy management solution can give a rapid return on investment for steam, air, gas, oil, water, heating and cooling.

Reducing energy use is more than just electricity monitoring

These days, the cost of electricity is constantly debated and is in the front of people’s minds when it comes to energy efficiency. While improvements in the use of large energy consumers (such as variable frequency drives for motor control) can have a significant impact on energy costs, there are many other industrial processes that have a large impact on energy consumption.

Companies can reach more of their energy optimisation goals by focusing on large energy consumers such as compressed air, steam, cooling and heating systems, in addition to the measurement and optimisation of gas, oil, water and electricity consumption.

Compressed air a common source of energy inefficiency

On site we sometimes take compressed air for granted, as part of everyday use. When we start measuring what we use, we can reduce air and energy usage by implementing intelligent compressor control.

Further savings can occur when we work towards finding and eliminating leaks.

Steam systems degrade over time

Because steam is not one of the media subject to mandatory verification, steam billing frequently involves detailed discussions when calculations are contested.

To measure the mass flow of steam accurately, you need a flow measurement system that includes pressure and temperature compensation. For this purpose, however, a total view of the error of all involved components is required to evaluate the measured value in a verifiable way, but in most cases, this view is lacking. As boiler systems deteriorate over time, accurate measurements help to identify losses and monitor the steam system for deteriorating conditions that cause energy losses.

High energy usage in heating and cooling

Whether in chemical reactors, utilities or for preserving food, or in air-conditioning systems, boilers, containers and pipework systems are being either heated or cooled. The cooling and heating systems often required operation around the clock and consume a great deal of energy.

Just as for air compression and steam systems, the question is how to save energy in these processes. How can I improve the efficiency of cooling and heating systems? Are deposits formed in cooling or heat exchangers that need to be removed on a regular basis? How much cooling do my cooling systems really need?

With the right meter at the right location, these questions can be answered in detail.

Utilising waste heat and eliminating heat losses

Refrigerating units such as chillers depend on electrically powered gas compressors. Over the entire lifecycle, the costs for the energy used in refrigeration exceed the procurement costs many times over. The potential for optimisation is in using measures such as recovering waste heat to be used as an energy source for other processes.

Many other processes involving heating and cooling also generate waste heat that could be utilised elsewhere. For generating heat (depending on the application), hot water, thermal oil or steam is used as an energy carrier, and the energy is transmitted in heat exchangers. The efficiency of the heat exchanger is critical here and correct metering can determine optimisation strategies.

Installing a metering and monitoring system can help quantify opportunities for energy re-use with the assistance of relevant process experts.

Efficient fuel usage

Many industrial processes use carbon fuels for high-intensity heating, and the efficiency of these processes depends on a number of factors.

The efficiency of heating boilers for example can be between 90% and 95%. However, poor operating conditions can impair the efficiency over the long term. Some fuels can also vary in quality, and so accurate temperature metering and fuel mass flow monitoring can help to ensure optimal fuel use and heating efficiency.

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